5 Listen, my beloved brethren:
did not God choose the poor of this world to be rich in faith and heirs of the
kingdom which He promised to those who love Him? NASB

Every person who is born into this world has the
potential of being saved.Anyone can
believe in Christ and anyone can grow up spiritually.

However, those who have few worldly resources to
depend on, can potentially have more interest and thus rely more on God and
faith, than those who have wealth.

The difference between the two, rich and poor, has to
do with where they place their trust, or to whom they look for help, in time of
need.

The wealthy have money, assets, and financial
resources.The wealthy can purchase
insurance, pay for legal council, and they can afford to buy new, or buy their
way out of a fix if the need arises.So,
there is the ever present tendency to rely on ones possessions.

The poor, on the other hand, lack these things.They cannot defend themselves in court.They cannot afford insurance.They cannot pay their monthly bills, or get
things fixed when they break.The poor
usually have poor credit, which limits their ability to finance purchases.When difficulties come along, they are
without resources and thus face greater hardships in life.

The poor nearly always find themselves between the
proverbial rock and hard place.And by
the way, the poor generally includes nearly everyone from the upper middle
class, downward.And why the upper
middle class?Well, they generally are
strapped with mortgages and debts, and live beyond their means, which gives
them some form of pressure in life.And
though they have greater resources than the working stiff's of the world, they
are not the wealthy class of whom James has been speaking.

James contrasted those who have nothing, with those
who are mega wealthy.The
multi-millionaire vs. the destitute.And
when both of these folks go to a church service, then what is likely to be
found in the heart of each?

The wealthy is likely to be there for show, while the
poor is there out of need.

And of course folks will slobber all over the rich
guy, while ignoring the poor man.

Spiritual growth follows spiritual desire, and the
underlying assumption here, in this illustration, is that the rich man sees no
need for God, faith, or a spiritual life, while the poor man has only those
things to turn to as he has no earthly resources to help him in time of
need.And, his needs are daily and
constant.

There is another view of the phrase, 'poor of the
world,' and that has to do with the content of ones soul.If you reject the world, that is, you reject
sin, arrogance, evil, and such pursuits, then you are poor in the world.Worldly views are not your focus.

And on the other hand, if your pursuit is in the
spiritual realm, then with spiritual growth, you will be rich.Therefore, though poor in worldly soul
content, you can be rich in spiritual content within your soul.And this principle can apply to anyone, billionaire
or pauper, of course.

Being poor, or middle class, and thus subject to the
pressures of life, such that there will be times when you have no resources
with which to deal with your problems, is a good thing.This pressure helps you look to God, Christ,
doctrine, and your spiritual life.

Being wealthy has the potential of leading you astray
from a need for God, by giving you something else to rely on in life.

But then, God is not without adequate tests for both
rich and poor.We all will face our
eventual death from this life, and if you are wealthy, then the best thing that
could possibly happen to you, is to get some terminal illness, which will force
you to look to God.This assumes of
course that you have generally ignored Him during your life.

You may have enough to pay for all the medical care in
the world, but there will always be a point when nothing exists that can help
you, and you will have to face the music of reality, so to speak.

As or the rest of us, the monthly bills and daily
living pressures are enough to drive us to intense prayer, because that is all
we have.

Now is the time to post a prayer.

End Of Lesson

Study to show thyself approved (mature) unto God, a workman that needs not to be ashamed, rightly dividing (studying/discerning), the Word of truth.